The GWU said today that it appeared that another meeting of the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development (MCESD) would not be held before the second week of January.

The union said such a delay meant that the calls by several social partners for an urgent meeting to discuss the utility tariffs was being ignored.

The fact that this was the festive period should not prevent the holding of the meeting, in view of the impact of the tariffs on businesses and the workers' spending power, the union said.

The meeting of the MCESD was clearly being delayed so as to make it almost superfluous since the tariffs would by that time have already come into force.

The union said it also appeared that the government was planning further individual meetings with employers' bodies, in a way which undermined social dialogue in the MCESD.